Cleveland chronicle: walking along

Jun 13, 2007

So far, beautiful weather here in Cleveland. I’ve been waking early in order to walk along Riverside Drive and down into the Metroparks and up to the Stinchcomb Memorial. The cool air, singing birds, honeysuckle scents and valley vistas have made these walks very enjoyable, and as I’ve walked along, I think about all the mornings my Grandpa Sisco strolled the streets of DeKalb, looking for loose change that he would later sort into old pill bottles to be divvied up among his children and grandchildren whenever they were about to drive on the tollway.

Yesterday I drove Erin to work (she’s a summer associate at Roetzel & Andress), and the girls and I then took a short walking tour of downtown. The streets were clean — no loose change — and flowerbeds were abundant, preparations for a big midday pep rally for the Cavs were filling the Mall B plaza, yellow-clad information officers on bicycles stopped to give me directions to Arabica Coffeehouse, a big turbine was spinning behind the Great Lakes Science Center, and painted guitars adorned most of the street corners. If felt good to be in a big city, and Cleveland looked great.

With sadness, later in the day we all headed east to Erie, PA to attend the wake of Joseph Lafuria, the father of Patti, who is married to Erin’s brother, Pat. Mr. Lafuria was a wonderful man (an Italian immigrant who reminded me of Grandpa Sisco), and he will be missed.